NEITI sets strategic goals for 2025, presents budget & highlights achievements.

NEITI sets strategic goals for 2025, presents budget & highlights achievements.

CHIGOZIE AMADI

The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) this Monday presented its 2024 Budget Performance Report and outlined its key priorities for the 2025 fiscal year.

The Executive Secretary of NEITI, Dr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji who led the NEITI Team to the presentation reaffirmed NEITI’s commitment to promoting transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s extractive sector while aligning with the national objectives of the economic diversification and sustainable resource management of government.

Presenting the Agency’s budget performance and projections for the 2025 fiscal year to the House Committee on Petroleum Resources – (Upstream), Chaired by Rt. Hon. Alhassan Ado Doguwa, Dr Orji disclosed that NEITI recorded commendable and measurable achievements in 2024, which was driven by the effective utilization of its approved budget. The achievements were in the areas of comprehensive and timely reporting, capacity building, stakeholders’ engagements and efficient budget execution.

On Comprehensive and timely reporting, NEITI completed and disseminated its 2022 and 2023 oil, gas, and solid minerals industry reports. These reports have been critical in shaping public policy and industry reforms, including addressing energy transition challenges.

While explaining the achievement made in the areas of capacity building and stakeholders’ engagement’s, Dr Orji noted that “NEITI strengthened its partnerships with civil society organizations, media, and government agencies, ensuring that the findings of its reports translated into actionable outcomes”.

On efficient budget execution, the Transparency Boss explained that “Despite economic constraints, NEITI achieved significant milestones with a prudent allocation of resources across personnel, overheads, and capital projects”.

On the 2025 Budget Objectives and Priorities, NEITI has set strategic goals for the implementation of its objective and priorities as outlined in the costed NEITI Workplan which is in alignment with the NEITI Strategic Plan.

According to Dr Orji, using the 2025 budget, “NEITI aims to build on the 2024 successes by focusing on strategic priorities that aligns with Nigeria’s socio-economic goals. These include strengthening fiscal transparency, energy transition and climate action, policy advocacy, legal reforms, capacity development and infrastructure operations”.

Dr Orji explained that NEITI will conduct independent audits and publish the reports that will cover year 2024 operations in the oil, gas, and solid minerals sectors. NEITI will also expand its focus on revenue generation, including tracking contributions from emerging energy sources and addressing illicit financial flows.

In the areas of Energy Transition and Climate Action, NEITI intends to support Nigeria’s energy transition roadmap by identifying opportunities for green energy solutions and advocating for the mitigation of environmental impacts from extractive activities. NEITI will also monitor government and industry compliance with gas flaring reduction commitments.

On Policy Advocacy and Legal Reforms, Dr Orji stated that NEITI will collaborate with stakeholders to finalize and implement the outstanding regulations under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA). NEITI will also advocate for reforms in the solid minerals sector to ensure increased revenue and accountability.

Dr Orji further explained that one of the priorities for 2025 is to enhance NEITI’s internal capacity to meet global transparency standards, including upgrading technological tools and training of personnel to meet the demands of EITI implementation in Nigeria. “We will also facilitate public education and awareness campaigns and build the capacity of stakeholders to strengthen engagements in resource governance”. Dr Orji emphasized.

In the area of infrastructure and operations, The NEITI Executive Secretary said that “NEITI will execute capital projects to support institutional strengthening, including IT infrastructure upgrades and operational efficiency improvements”.

The Executive Secretary used the opportunity of the Budget Defense to commend the Federal Government for its continued support to the institution and called on stakeholders, including the National Assembly, donor partners, and civil society, to sustain collaborative efforts towards achieving set objectives.